07/29/2020 - 12:18
- Clarín.com
- Economy
- Economy
It is known that in the Hot Sale, which began on Monday and ends on Wednesday (although some companies will extend it for a few more days), not all that is shown are offers and that to really take advantage of it, you must be clear at what price what you want to buy before discounts was published.
And, just as consumers find the "fanned out" companies, this year the Government also decided to intervene through the Ministry of Productive Development to keep an eye on misleading publications. Through the Undersecretary for Actions for the Defense of Consumers, which reports to the Ministry of Internal Trade, the portfolio led by Matías Kulfas initiated official files on various companies for alleged breach of the Consumer Defense Law (No. 24,240) in the promoted offers.
The companies charged so far are Movistar, Personal, Red Megatone, Jumbo, Suavestar, Garbarino, Despegar, Al Mundo, Cetrogar, Philco, Dexter, Netshoes, Frávega, The Toy World, Walmart, Sodimac and Mercado Libre.
In the case of Personal, Movistar, Red Megatone, Jumbo and Suavestar, it was noted that within the Hot Sale they offer some products that maintain the same prices as last week.
There are sites that allow you to buy the price history of products.
Regarding Garbarino, it was found that he publishes the price of a product at a higher value than that published before the Hot Sale, and in another article it is offered without reducing the price.
"In these cases, it is presumed that the companies are not complying with their obligations and would provide uncertain information, since it would not be exclusive and new offers , misleading consumers due to the fact that the online sales event is promoted in on the basis that users will be able to find exclusive discounts for the most important e-commerce brands in the country, "the ministry said in a statement.
On the other hand, Despegar and Al Mundo companies offer tourist services without specifying the previous price of the same products. Here, according to Productive Development, the right to certain, clear and detailed information that consumers must possess is being violated, "which would result in an alleged breach of the obligation of suppliers to inform the price prior to the offer (art. 2 of Resolution No. 7/2002) ".
Cetrogar, Philco, Dexter, Netshoes, Frávega and The world of toys offer within the Mercado Libre portal, some of their products indicating an earlier price that, in reality, is higher than that published last week . The same behavior was detected in the offers made by Walmart and Sodimac on their websites.
In all these cases, it would be misleading to create the perception that it is a higher discount than it really is. Consequently, companies were charged for providing uncertain information regarding the previous price and the current discount.
Lastly, the Government imputed Mercado Libre, for all the cases where the offer of the mentioned companies was made on the portal , "because its action would not be limited to the mere intermediation between suppliers and consumers, but rather promoted and offers the Hot Sale incorporating a link so that consumers can access the full list of stores and products offered.He is responsible for the information provided on his site regarding the previous prices of the products and their reliability since, otherwise , the good faith of the consumer who trusts the portal and the promotions that the firm disseminates would be affected, "the statement said.
In all the files, the screenshots of the offers of the last week of each of the companies and those issued in the framework of the Hot Sale 2020 were added in order to graph the situation.
All the charges for alleged infractions of the Consumer Defense Law were notified on July 28. Companies have 5 business days, which cannot be extended, for the release. The fines for these infractions can reach $ 5 million.
The Government said that consumers can claim on the page of the Defense of Consumers.
